Your Voice: Letters to the Editor

Party shouldn’t matter

I fully agree with the logic and fairness of Kurt Kuban’s column (“Should We Look at the Way We Do Elections?”) on the recent election. I wanted to vote for Robert Nix as Supervisor. I spoke to him in the parking lot before I voted. I thanked him for his recent work on the roads and said I would vote for him on the ballot.

I did use my vote in support of the operating millage renewal.

I went to vote for Mr. Nix on the ballot and was blocked by the constraints of the present election and ballot rules. My vote and support for him was not allowed and never counted.

Thank you for this important article. Democracy depends on citizens participating in the process. That process includes the opportunity to vote for all candidates on the ballot, regardless of party.

I couldn’t agree more with your editorial in the August issue: Northville Township needs non-partisan local elections so that voters from both parties can always make their voices heard. I don’t see how party affiliation is relevant to how local officials deal with local issues. Nor is how they feel about Right to Life, which Mark Abbo, Roger Lundberg and Jason Rhines used as a wedge issue.

While we’re at it, let’s urge our representatives in Lansing to adopt the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact and end the electoral college’s ability to circumvent the votes of a majority of U.S. citizens.

Column was misleading

Kurt Kuban’s discussion of absentee ballots in his August column was intentionally misleading. President Trump has made a difference in his discussions between absentee ballots and mail-in ballots. Absentee ballots are first requested on an application, which contains the requestor’s signature and sufficient information to vet the requester and insure that person is registered and the address matches the clerk’s records. The ballot contains a bar code, and the envelope with the return ballot contains the voter’s signature.

Mail-in ballots are often randomly mailed, and may not even be signed when returned. Like putting a stack on a kiosk in a mall. No ballot integrity in this method. If the process has all the elements of integrity that are contained in the absentee description, then OK, but if not, there is the possibility of fraud. With the exception of the Secretary of State’s blind mailing of applications, Michigan passes the integrity test and Trump would approve.

In the August issue, editor Kurt Kuban seemed confused. He made it sound like absentee ballots and mail-in ballots are the same thing. They are not. Absentee ballots are requested by the voter. Mail-in ballots are not. President Trump approves absentee ballots, but is against mail in ballots. He would have had no problem with the 8,284 absentee ballots cast in our town in the last election.

Just clarifying that when President Trump refers to potential election fraud by mailing ballots, he is not referring to absentee ballots, which are checked and verified against registered voter records by the clerks’ office. This is quite different from the mail in voting being proposed. You may want to follow up on this in your next “A View From The ‘Ville.”

I take issue in Editor Kurt Kuban’s column with the statement, “President Trump says that people mailing in their ballots is a plot…” The President supports absentee voting; he votes absentee himself. He opposes local and state officials mass mailing ballots using potentially inaccurate voter data. The difference is huge. Absentee voting is initiated by the registered voter, at their request, their identity having been verified. Public officials mass mailing ballots without individual voter request is fraught with issues, like verification of identity. I would hope you and local publishers would be more careful with the facts. We have enough false information at the national level.

Support Darga for County Commissioner

I have been a resident of the City of Northville since 1998. During that time, I have come to know most of the people who have served our local government on a personal and professional manner. None do I trust more to do what is right for our 9th District in the County of Wayne than Nancy Darga. Nancy more than any other has a strong, independent voice and will take bold action.

Both Nancy and I ran for City Council in 2015. During my campaign, despite the fact we were opponents, she was more than willing to help me understand in a clear and thoughtful manner the current issues facing our city. I am confident that Nancy will display this same integrity in making decisions for us on the county commission and work hard to revitalize Wayne County.

For those who already know Nancy I am sure you agree she is the right person for the job, but we all must do our part. Please tell your friends and family to support Nancy Darga.

Please join me in supporting Nancy Darga for Wayne County Commissioner, District 9. Nancy has a vision for revitalizing Wayne County, which includes strengthening our Health & Safety Departments, rebuilding our aging infrastructure, protecting our park land and re-energizing our economy.

Serving on the Northville City Council for 12 years, I could always count on Nancy to fairly consider and rule on issues important to the residents of Northville. Her years of work experience and public service make her eminently qualified to lead our county into the future. She has championed efforts in restoring the Rouge River watershed, protecting our park lands and preserving historic landmarks.

Nancy will lead with integrity and accomplishment.

As a resident of Northville since 1996 and a member of the Northville Arts Commission since 1997, I have known Nancy Darga for many years while she has worn many different “hats” in her devotion to community service. Nancy is one of the most passionate people I know. She researches, she questions (and is not afraid to ask the hard questions), she articulates and she fights for good governance. She is an excellent choice for Wayne County Commissioner and definitely has my vote.

Walkers – stay on the left

As daily walkers in Northville Township, we notice that pedestrians are everywhere on the sidewalk-less streets—left, right, and middle of the road.

In Michigan, according to the Secretary of State, guidelines are quite clear:

“Pedestrians are reminded to: Walk on the side of the road as far to the left as possible or on a paved shoulder against oncoming traffic where there are no sidewalks.”

Walking on the right WITH traffic will not permit walkers (often with earbuds!) to see or hear vehicles behind them until it’s too late to take evasive action. Please, pedestrians stay on the left!

Campbell-Voytal is proven leader

Kim Campbell-Voytal is a recognized educator and experienced public health leader who will make an important contribution to the Northville School Board if elected this November. I had the pleasure of working with Kim at Wayne State University for over a decade. Kim was the program director for the graduate and undergraduate Public Health Programs. As director, she successfully advanced program excellence and moved the programs toward national accreditation at a time when state funding was constrained.

Kim has received multiple awards for teaching excellence and actively mentors faculty in their teaching roles. Kim is a leader who listens, seeks consensus, and makes best-evidence decisions with the interests of educators and students at her core. Kim would bring a fresh perspective, energy and expertise needed by the School Board as it faces the many challenges ahead. For these reasons, I urge you to vote for Kimberly Campbell-Voytal in November.

Tanya Lundberg has right background

It is my honor and pleasure to endorse Tanya Lundberg for Northville Township Trustee. Ms. Lundberg is an accomplished lawyer and Assistant Dean of Career Services and Outreach at Detroit Mercy Law. She is an active member of the community supporting various local organizations such as Northville Youth Football Association and Northville Public Schools.

She acts with integrity, caring and thoughtfulness -- traits that are imperative as a civil servant representing all residents of Northville. She is committed to protecting our environment, promoting inclusive and welcoming environment in our community and supporting economic development through residential and commercial development.

Ms. Lundberg has an excellent background to serve as Northville Township Trustee. Her leadership and thoughtfulness will be strong assets while working with others and promoting well-being for our residents and community.

Thank you for your consideration of Tanya Lundberg for Northville Township Trustee.

I am writing to support Tanya Lundberg’s campaign for Northville Township Trustee. I stand behind Tanya’s campaign focus areas. Protecting our environment is crucial, and ensuring our township is maintained for a safe and healthy environment for years to come is so important. Carefully considering future residential and commercial development, especially its impact on the community, green spaces, and needed infrastructure are essential.

Finally, inclusion is central to my beliefs. As an educator, examining and reflecting upon policies, interactions, experiences, and bias is a constant practice. Striving to include all in our community is essential, and doing the work of making change is critical. I trust Tanya to advocate in these areas as township trustee.

By Brad Emons

Even in practice, Matt Ladach is normally high energy, often an exuberant guy when it comes to coaching his Northville High School football team. But the 2020 off season has been anything but normal due to the ongoing concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With all the social distancing restrictions, it’s been a strange start to say the least not only for Ladach, who enters his 11th year as coach with a career record of 73-44, but also for his players and coaching staff.

After the Michigan High School Athletic Association announced on Aug. 14 that the season had been postponed until the spring of 2021, players got a second chance when Governor Gretchen Whitmer gave the MHSAA the O.K. to return to practice (Sept. 8) with the first game and an abbreviated 2020 six-game regular season starting back up on Sept. 18. Every team will get at least one playoff game.

The news on Sept. 3 left area coaches somewhat stunned and scrambling to say the least. For Ladach, it’s been tough to adjust to the whole situation.

“I like to give the guys high-fives, I like to give them fist bumps,” Ladach said. “I pat them on the back all the time. It’s hard because all those little things that you get so used to doing . . . but now, we’ve got to stay away. That has been very hard. The other part, I would say, is the uncertainty of everything. I’m probably, to a fault, a very organized and well-planned individual, so the uncertainty of all of this has been driving me a little nuts.”

It’s been a tough adjustment for the players, as well.

“It’s a big sacrifice, just trying to get the hang of everything, the guidelines, rules, just everything,” said senior Cayden Saunders, a returning starter at running back and linebacker. “Especially being a football team, it’s hard being spread out all the time because we’re used to being close together, all hyped up and everything. It’s a different situation this year.”

Ladach said his freshman, JV and varsity squads have adapted well to the changes when it

comes to water breaks, pretraining and post-training.

Participation numbers haven’t been really affected due to concerns over the pandemic, according to Ladach.

“We had a pretty good summer. It’s been good,” he said.

IMPROVING THE OFFENSE

After Ladach guided the Mustangs to seven Division 1 postseason playoff berths in eight years from 2009 through 2016, Northville has suffered through three consecutive 3-6 seasons, including a 2-5 mark last year in the KLAA West. In 2019, the offense didn’t generate much of an attack scoring. Northville managed only a total of 89 points in nine games.

“Collectively, as a team, our defense has been pretty good the past couple of years,” Ladach said. “But we were on the field way too much. Our defense took way too many snaps the last few years. The more often on the field, the more opportunities the opponents get . . . so we really need to limit our opponents’ possessions and need to be able to limit the length of their drives. I think fewer defensive snaps is really a key for us and obviously that means more offensive snaps. We just got to be able to put our kids in the best position we possibly can and when we have opportunities, we’ve got to capitalize on them.”

Revamping and improving the offensive line this fall is job No. 1 for Ladach, who will rely on the experience of returnees Joshua Kreder, a senior, along with juniors Ryan Reynolds and Jake Merritt.

“We’ve really just got to stay more conditioned and then be more up tempo because a lot of times the skill positions were ready last year and then the O-Line took a couple of more seconds to get up,” Kreder said. “The conditioning and the mental go hand-in-hand.”

Even with the offseason limitations, the players believe they are light years ahead of last season.

“We’re really united right now,” Reynolds said. “I think if we just keep that up, keep our chemistry going, we’re going to go a lot farther than we have been.”

Ladach believes the Mustangs have depth at a number of offensive skill positions, and he’s excited to see what can happen on the offensive side of the ball.

“We definitely won’t have wholesale changes, but there will be little tweaks. And most of that will be personnel driven,” he said.

Entering camp, the Mustangs had three players competing for the starting quarterback job including juniors Jack Holland and Tommy Mandell and sophomore Luca Prior. Ladach said Mandell might be the quickest runner out of the three, while Holland and Prior have the edge throwing the football.

The receiving corps is deep with the return of senior Brett

Rankin, an honorable mention All-KLAA pick, along with juniors Kai Sanders and Parker Ladach.

“It just seems like this team is buying into what we’re doing, just ready to work,” said Rankin, who also plays defensive back. “Obviously it’s very different, people social distancing, wearing masks. A lot of drills are limited. No real getting together, stuff like that. We’re doing the best with what we’re trying to do. I’ve adjusted and I think everyone has.”

Last year, Ladach used as many as eight sophomores on the varsity squad, including offensive lineman Dominic Green, wide receiver Grady Zoroya and defensive lineman Matthew Barnett, and that experience should pay off this year.

KLAA IS TOUGH

The Mustangs will open their abbreviated 2020 season on Friday, Sept. 18 at Canton (5-5, 4-3) before returning home on Friday, Sept. 25 to take on KLAA West favorite Brighton (11-3, 6-1), the Division 1 state runner-up.

“I think our (KLAA West) division is going to be excellent,” Ladach said. “I really think each team is improved. There’s no easy opponent on our schedule.”

Putting out a more balanced team offensively will be the key for the Mustangs’ success.

“We’ve gotten a lot more accurate and a lot more plays coming out this year,” Kai Saunders said. “And I think we’ll have a better season.”

Meanwhile, older brother Cayden Saunders is excited for what the 2020 season could bring despite all of the COVID concerns.

“I think this year we just have to get everybody to buy in, commit more to the system,” he said. “We especially have a lot of real good guys this year. And what I’ve been seeing so far, I think we can really turn this thing around this year.”

Senior receiver Brett Rankin was an honorable mention All-KLAA pick in 2019.